IN THE NEWS
Phila. Attorney Reflects on Client’s $1M Win Against Officers’ No-Knock Search Warrant
After several SWAT unit officers entered the wrong apartment and fatally shot the resident’s dog, a federal jury returned a $1 million verdict against the city of Philadelphia, finding the city failed to adequately train its officers on no-knock search warrants, among other policies.
Alvarado, who said she was held at gunpoint for nearly 30 minutes, claimed the city should be subject to liability for failing to train the officers the “knock and announce” rule, which requires officers to knock and announce themselves before enforcing a search warrant and gives residents an opportunity to surrender.
The case is captioned Alvarado v. City of Philadelphia and was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.> Read More
Cities, States, and Now Grieving Families Are Taking Ghost Gun Makers to Court
In the last several weeks of Sahmya Heaven Garcia’s young life, she sought a protective order against a former boyfriend who had become her stalker. Despite her vigilance, as she walked to work from her South Philadelphia apartment on the morning of November 8, 2022, Garcia’s stalker gunned her down on a street corner, shooting her 11 times with what authorities said was a Glock-styled ghost gun — a self-assembled firearm often sold and purchased online. She was 20 years old.
The man, Marcus Burney, was a convicted felon who circumvented state law to get a ghost gun; he is serving a 35-to-70-year state prison sentence for Garcia’s murder. Now, her parents have filed suit against the murder weapon’s manufacturer, Polymer80, Inc., the nation’s largest manufacturer of ghost guns.> Read More
Philadelphia Woman Sues Gas Stations Over Crime After Son Was Shot and Killed
Corliss Jackson, whose son was killed while leaving a Philadelphia gas station, and her attorney David Thiruselvam relay the urgency of crime at gas stations and why they have decided to take the issue to court.
Carjackings at Philadelphia gas stations have increased by more than 300% this year compared to 2021, according to a report.
“You got to arm yourself. It’s dangerous out here. It’s wild,” Philadelphia resident Melvin Dunn told WPVI. > Read More
Philadelphia Gas Station Owner Hires Armed Agents to Patrol Property
The owner of a North Philadelphia gas station says he took security measures into his own hands to keep his customers and employees safe.
Neil Patel hired a private security company, Pennsylvania State Agents, to patrol his KARCO gas station at Broad and Clearfield streets three weeks ago, and now he has a daily armed presence with at least two agents on the premise nightly.
“We’re Pennsylvania State Agents and we’re not security. Basically, what we do is security details when the public calls upon us when the police can’t be there,” explained Andre Boyer. > Read More
ABOUT OUR FIRM
The Victims’ Recovery Law Center was founded in July of 2007 by David P. Thiruselvam, under its previous name, The Law Offices of David P. Thiruselvam LLC. Mr. Thiruselvam began his legal career as a public defender in Philadelphia before becoming a highly-successful house counsel for an insurance company, until he realized his true calling as an advocate for crime victims and individuals who have suffered catastrophic personal injury.
When the firm first started accepting crime victims as clients, there were only a few law firms who represented crime victims in civil cases. Since opening its doors in July of 2007, this firm has become one of the area’s prominent law firms dedicated to representing victims of crime in civil cases. Since 2017, this multi-attorney practice has included Keith Thomas West, an experienced trial attorney and former judicial clerk who has handled many complex lawsuits on behalf of crime victims and catastrophically injured plaintiffs.
The Victims’ Recovery Law Center has often accepted cases on behalf of severely injured victims that were previously declined by several of the area’s major law firms, usually because these firms lacked the expertise necessary to provide compensation for victims of crime. However, our firm has successfully resolved almost all of these previously-rejected cases in the clients’ favor, often with a substantial settlement or jury verdict. A typical case that this firm was able to handle successfully after it was rejected by many other firms was the case of a
single father who was shot in the face by the local drug dealer when he exited his apartment building to get his son some pizza. Although the five law firms that rejected this case told the client they were sorry for what happened to him but unable to help, we successfully filed suit against the management company of the apartment building for allowing the drug dealer to ply his trade and terrorize the residents, and settled the case for a substantial, confidential seven-figure amount.
In addition to many shooting cases, we have successfully represented our clients in cases involving victims of professional malpractice, sexual assault, the abuse of minors, sex-trafficking, alcohol service and over-intoxication, murder, arson, fraud, terrorism, police excessive force, inadequate security, civil rights violations, nuisance properties, property collapse, assault and battery, whistleblowers, and involving corporations, governments, and religious institutions that have permitted abuse, and many more.
ATTORNEY PROFILES
Our trial attorneys are leaders in the field of representing crime victims and
individuals who have suffered catastrophic personal injury.
CONTACT OUR FIRM TODAY
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PRAISE FROM OUR CLIENTS
Our clients are our passion. We COMMIT our skills
to represent them THOROUGHLY and PROFESSIONALLY.
Jamal
D’Anna
Jonathan
Michael
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
